


The Sapphire Chapter - Nuzlocke

by CynicalSkarmory



Category: Pocket Monsters | Pokemon (Main Video Game Series)
Genre: Gen
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2014-12-27
Updated: 2015-02-12
Packaged: 2018-03-03 20:45:53
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Major Character Death
Chapters: 3
Words: 2,647
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/2886950
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/CynicalSkarmory/pseuds/CynicalSkarmory
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Bethany never wanted to be like every other teenager in her world, not interested in adventures or being a hero. Never wanted to leave her small town of Littleroot. Her father (Norman) left her and her mother 3 years ago to "pursue his dreams" but she suspects there are other , much darker reasons. Her Mother (Katie) never speaks about him any more and every time she tries to ask, an excuse is always given to avoid conversation. This is changed after meeting (Birch) and his son (Brendan) who claim they know her father. This story is based on my nuzlocke of Pokemon Alpha Sapphire with parts of it changed due to story reasons.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. "Backstory"

**Author's Note:**

> Hi! This is my first real attempt at writing a large story such as this. I hope that if you read this that you enjoy it, and any kind of feedback from you lovely people would be much appreciated.

#  The Sapphire Chapter - Nuzlocke 

###  Chapter 1 - "Backstory" 

_18/07/14 Hi! I've never really been good at talking about myself , but this is a story, and therefore I kind of have to. Lets start off with the basics. My name is Bethany and I am 15 years old. Most kids leave their homes to go on adventures before my age but I've never been part of the "most kids" clique. My favourite colour is purple and my birthday is the 14th of July. That was 4 days ago and for my birthday I received this notebook in which I am writing in now. My parents are divorced after my father left 3 years ago to "pursue" his dreams. A load of bollocks in my opinion but I haven't spoken to him since. I live in a quaint little town called Littleroot. I've never really thought about leaving despite my mother's hints at how I'd have a better life adventuring like the rest of them. But the other kids have died. The world is a very dangerous place to live in. Just the other day a kid from my town, just about 12 years old was attacked by a horde of Poochyena. He'd just left on a journey with his first pokemon that day. There was not enough left of him to warrant a proper burial so we cremated him and erected a gravestone in his honour. His pokemon was never found. It's not the first time we've lost people to wild pokemon. Ever since my father left however , its been a lot worse. A company named Devon has developed a system that enables us to communicate with any captured pokemon. It's so weird, being able to talk not only to my mother but now all of her pokemon. I'm no longer so lonely. That's gonna make leaving so much harder... I'm older than most kids around these parts so wild pokemon may not think to attack me so much. I should explain... Today something quite strange happened. It was unexpected to say the least , but now I have a purpose. To find my father and get some answers for the questions I've had burning deeply inside of me for 3 years._

"BETHANY!" 

I hear my mum shout up the stairs for the 5th time in the space of a couple minutes. I wait for the follow up that I was sure that would come. I wasn't disappointed. 

"If I've told you once, I've told you a thousand times! Lock the door after yourself for Arceus' sake! What if a robber got in?! You hear those stories about team agua or lava fiends or whatever name they go by! You need to be more responsible if you want to keep staying out at night. Now please get your sorry ass out of bed and go to the shop for me!" 

I sigh. "Yup, sure mum, I'll be down in a couple minutes!" 

To be honest shouting at me is the quickest way to make me do the exact opposite of what you want me to but I'm in a relatively good mood so I haul myself out of bed and into my Buneary slippers. I steal a quick glance in the mirror and see the state of my tangled blonde hair. 

"Ugh, I'll shower when I get back," I mutter to myself. 

I throw my hair into a ponytail, so my hair now only reaches my shoulders. I've thought about dying it , maybe some kind of reddish colour , but I know my sweet mother downstairs would have a fit if I did. I quickly finish getting changed and skip downstairs , almost tripping on the bottom step but catching myself at the last moment. I scoop up my bag , along with the list of groceries to fetch and the money I'd been left and head out the door. Friday is market day, so the town is bound to be busy. Good, I'd much rather blend in with the crowd.


	2. "Fight or Flight"

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry it's taken so long, getting back into writing is harder than expected, and I want the fic to be at least half-decent. Thank you for your patience. The chapter length will slowly increase as the story gets more intense/the nuzlocke starts xD

### Chapter 2 - "Fight or Flight"

I take a deep breath of almost fresh air, only dirtied by the powerful fragrance of the local spices made from various berries that grow amazingly well here in Hoenn. I check my list quickly, noting each item and the easiest way to gather everything in the shortest time possible. Deciding that I need only visit two shops I begin walking.

My first destination was the Poke-block stall that was just across from the house. Living closer to the centre of town does have certain benefits I suppose. "Hi there miss! How can I assist you?" says the overly chirpy young woman in front of me... Claire I think her name is. 

"Good morning" I reply, trying to get some of the sleepiness out of my voice. "My mother, Katie, sent me to pick up some Poke-block for Tayshan." 

"I see, one moment please miss. You know, I remember making this batch earlier today. I would say, Tayshan has a very good taste in Poke-block. My darling Skitty, Belle, loves the exact same recipe for Pink Poke-block! " Claire explains, still keeping her chirpy voice. It surprises me how somebody could stay that happy, this early in the morning. She hands me a small bag. "Thank you! It's been lovely talking to you! I hope to see you again sometime!" She adds as I hand over the money. 

The rest of my trip consists of another walk, this one much longer to the general goods store on the other side of town to pick up some various ingredients, toothpaste, and some spot cream (thanks Mum). Rather than carry everything separately, I place the Poke-block bag in with the other groceries. I decide to risk walking back around the side of the town rather than spend an extra twenty minutes walking though the town. I NEED a shower and I think its worth the small risk of getting eaten by a wild Pokemon. The edge of town is much quieter than the centre, and I think the spices are starting to get to my head. I can hear a deep growling, which I can only assume was my stomach. I was very much mistaken. 

Leaping from the bush beside me a Poochyena appeared, quite clearly both angry and starving. The eyes on this feral Poochyena were bloodshot and it had many scars covering it's face. It leaped again this time fangs bared, aiming for my throat. I couldn't help turning and fleeing , discarding the bags in an attempt to distract the Pokemon. A jet of water flew past me, and into the opened maw of the Poochyena. A cascade of red hot embers scorched the wild Pokemon's tail, causing it to howl in pain. A green blur darted past me and slammed it's tail into the Pokemon causing it to faint. I swivelled round to see two Pokemon picking up my discarded groceries and the third - the green blur stood in front of me. 

"Are you going to be alright, Mi'lady?" It asks in an imperious tone. 

"Um... Yeah. I think so... Thank you," I reply, breathless and overwhelmed. 


	3. "Protection"

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> IMMMMMM SORRRRRRRRRYYYYYYY!!! I wish I could have uploaded this sooner. Please forgive me... Consider it a Valentines gift :)

### Chapter 3 - "Protection" 

A stocky man and a kid around the same age as myself run up to me. The man seems almost as tired as I feel right now, judging by his bright red face and beads of sweat on his forehead. The kid speaks first, forcing a friendly tone.

"Hey kid, you alright? We were out doing fieldwork when we saw you being jumped. Naturally we had to come running, this town has enough deaths as it is." 

"Hah, one step ahead of you mate, already asked her that! She looks fine, just a bit taken aback by your's truly." I turn and look at the green Pokémon.

"That's true... You three-" I start.

"Don't forget me and my Dad!" 

"Hahaha! It's all good, as long as nobody is hurt I couldn't care less about you thanking me. My name is Birch, and this is my Son, Brendan and we are this town's Pokémon specialists. I think now is not the best time to talk, so I'd appreciate it if you came by later to my lab to... discuss a couple things." This came from the man, who sounds quite jolly, in contrast to his son who most would describe as moody. 

"Uhh... Sure? I suppose my Mum wouldn't mind... So long as I don't mention this... incident." I say sheepishly.

My Mum's reaction to something serious is like a lucky dip. Sometimes you get nothing, occasionally you'll get something good and most of the time you waste your money, or in my case breath. I say this to him so I didn't sound as irresponsible as I seemed at this moment. The two males escort me home, I'm assuming for protection, but you never know. I chat to the three Pokémon and they introduce themselves properly. Maria is a Mudkip, a water type with amazing aim and she appears to be the kindest of the trio, as well as the only female. Harland is a Torchic who has a rather hyperactive nature, running about chirping and talking constantly. The green Pokémon from earlier wouldn't tell me his real name, claiming to go by the name Stem. He seems serious, determined in a way. He jokes about with the others, but there is definitely something more to him. 

The walk home is far from pleasant, Brendan insistently takes my bag and refuses to give it back, as well as this the creepy eye contact he keeps making is... well creepy. I avert my eyes and keep walking, biting my lip, as usual when scared or nervous. We arrive outside my home. I snatch my bag from Brendan, who I see is looking through my living room window, and walk through my door. Tayshan, my Mother's Taillow, flies down towards me at an astonishing speed, much quicker than any wild Taillow and starts attacking my bag in search of her PokeBlock. 

"Hey! Back off Tayshan, you wild beast." I joke.

"Sorry... I didn't mean to startle you miss!" The small bird pulls her head out of the plastic bag and flutters over to our kitchen counter. She starts to pull the bird equivalent of puppy dog eyes. I walk over to her, taking the PokeBlock out of the bag I am carrying and hand a piece to her. I duck as she tries to attach herself to my face, while screeching with joy. Personally I believe that the bird Pokémon is very spoilt, but she's great company, always willing to listen or play. Apparently Tayshan and my Mum used to make quite the battling team. She used to be a Gym Trainer at my Father's Gym in Petalburg until they split up.

"Oh good you're back." My Mum enters the room just as I finish putting the last of the groceries away. 

"Yeah, is everything ok Mum?" I say, genuinely worried about what she might say, and biting my lip in anticipation.

"Oh, yes, everything is ok. Did you really go out without taking a shower? Wow... I hope you didn't run into any boys smelling like that."

"Umm... Maybe? Actually I was meaning to ask you if I could go out." I say, biting my lip once more.

"Go ahead, I could use you out of the house for a while anyways."

"After I shower of course!" I add as I sprint upstairs, use less than 20 seconds getting out of my clothes and into the shower. I spend a good 20 minutes in the shower before the sound of footsteps could be heard coming upstairs. I've mastered the art of turning off the shower, jumping out and wrapping myself in a towel in roughly 9 seconds. Don't believe me? I actually got Tayshan to time me once, you can ask her. Before my Mum could knock, I open the door and walk past her, fresh as a Bellossom and say "All done! I'll be gone in 10 minutes Mum!" 

I am finally ready to leave. Feeling a great deal better than I did after the now all but forgotten attack, I skip out of the house. Me skipping is rare, like rarer than a legendary Pokémon. I can't explain why I feel so excited and happy. The boy, although about my age, wasn't particularly cute or anything like that and the man - Birch I think his name is, seems like a nice enough man but nothing to get excited about either. Perhaps it was the Pokémon I had met? I'm not sure, however by the time I have taken my mind off the subject, I find myself in front of the Pokémon Research Facility. I've been around this area a couple of times before, normally to take Tayshan to be taken care of if she was hurt, seeing as this town does not have a Pokémon center. 

I walk into the Lab, not particularly knowing where to go. A couple of people look up from their desks to stare at me, but say nothing. I was about to reach the end of the main hallway, when the Professor and his son emerge from one of the side rooms.

“Ahah! Bethany, good to see you! You look puzzled, what’s up?” Professor Birch says to me, taking a seat behind a large oak desk and entwining his hands. Brendan grabbed a swivel chair from a nearby table and begun swinging himself round. He had some disturbing grin on his face and I instantly feel nervous, more so than I already was.

“I was just wondering why you wanted me to come here…” I reply, speaking slowly.

“Well Missy, after I saved your life with my amazing Pokémon mastery, my Dad and I had a little chat. We realised exactly who you were… Bethany, Norman’s daughter,” answers Brendan.

“Yeah. So what? What does my Father have to do with me being here?” I say bitterly.

“Well it’s complicated, but your Father and I were once very close friends, until he left town almost without trace. I figure that now you are of a mature age, that you could go find him… Obviously, it’s up to you. I'll give you a Pokémon to take with you. I’m sure that you also have some… ahem… questions of your own that you would like to ask him…” Professor Birch leans forward slightly and places his hands flat on the desk. 

“What you say is true… I really have to ask him some questions, but I’m not risking my life! You saw what happened earlier!” I start chewing on the inside of my cheek. 

“I’ll come with you then.”

“Are you sure Brendan?” Professor Birch turns to his son, looking petrified.

“Yeah, I can show her what it means to be a Pokémon trainer. Then she won’t end up like the others in this town… Dead that is.” Brendan says, shrugging and returning his gaze to me and smiling.

“BRENDAN! Don’t say stuff like that…” I exclaim, shocked by how blasé he seems.

“Well. It was kind of their own fault. But with me protecting you hun, you have nothing to worry about. Plus Dad just said he’d give you a Pokémon.” He says with a wink. I pause for a moment, thinking about the kids motives... Obviously he likes me in some way… I think of my Dad and how badly I want to see him, but also how much I desire slap him. 

“What about my Mum….” 

“She already knows Bethany. She wants you to make your own decision. She misses your Father, but there is no way she could go and find him. You and Brendan together could make it to Petalburg.”

“I… I don’t know…” I stutter, holding my hands to my head and sliding to the floor.


End file.
